Incline Friends
Incline Friends Karma Hour
Last week President Obama signed the law clearing up the railway right-of-way issue with the Manitou Incline. The Colorado Springs council also passed the needed resolution for legalizing the Incline for hiking. The only step remaining to legalizing the Incline is a resolution by the Manitou Springs city council. Manitou Springs council is expected to vote on January 29th.
There are now many loose ties on the Incline. Stabilizing some sections need to be done soon or more work will be needed. The Incline Friends are tasked with raising money to repair and maintain the Incline.
Total cost to implement the Incline Management Plan will run about $1 million, and the Incline Friends need $200,000 of that by the first week of March to meet a critical grant deadline. They expect much of it to come from private donors, but not all of it.
There are a few ways to help the Incline Friends raise money. Tomorrow night there’s a fun one. The Incline Friends Karma Hour will be at Bristol Brewery (1647 S. Tejon) from 5 to 9 PM Tuesday, Jan. 15. Bristol will donate $1 to the Incline Friends for every pint sold. Click here for more on the Incline Friends Karma Hour.
Other ways to help the Incline Friends is to join them, donate using the donate link on their website or putting money into the tube at the bottom of the Incline.
Incline Expected to be Legal February 1, 2013
After 4 years and much hard work by many people the Manitou Incline is expected to be legal for hiking the beginning of next month. The U.S. Senate late Sunday approved a bill clearing up the railway right of way issue for the Incline. Sen. Michael Bennet pushed the bill in the Senate and Rep. Doug Lamborn led the effort in the House where the bill passed back in July.
The Manitou Incline management plan identified 13 key steps to complete before the Incline could be made legal. Now that all of those steps have been taken, the only things remaining are for Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs to pass resolutions making hiking it legal. The Colorado Springs City Council is expected to vote on the resolution at its meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 8. Manitou Springs has indicated it will vote on resolution during a Special Meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 29.
“As we look at closing this chapter of the process with a vote to legalize the Incline from the City of Colorado Springs and the City of Manitou Springs’ City Councils, we can begin the next chapter in our process – improving the Incline,” said Sarah Bryarly, Landscaping Architect and Project Manager for the City of Colorado Springs.
The Incline Friends is the non-profit tasked with fundraising for improving the Incline and have been a big part of legalizing the Incline. Incline Friends will need your help in a major fundraising push. Total cost to implement the plan will run about $1 million and they need $200,000 of that by the first week of March to meet a critical grant deadline. They expect much of this to come from private donors but not all of it.
They’ll start with the Incline Friends Karma Hour, 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 15 at Bristol Brewery (1647 S. Tejon). Bristol will donate $1 to the Incline Friends for every pint sold.
In the meantime, we’d like to encourage you to join Incline Friends and/or make an online contribution (find the PayPal “Donate” link on the main page of the Incline Friends website.) There’s also a donation tube at the bottom of the Incline that you can throw in a buck or more when you hike the Incline.
Incline Work Day May 12
The Incline Friends have a major volunteer work day planned for the Incine for May 12th. You’ll have the opportunity to be one of the first volunteers to help improve the Maintou Incline. Join the Cities of Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs, REI, Incline Friends, Trails and Open Space Coalition, and Friends of the Peak to help
- Prune vegetation and remove rebar from the trail corridor
- Install fence around the Barr Parking Lot
- Close social trails
- Install wayfinding signs
- Rehab portions of Barr Trail
Parking is only available at Manitou Springs High School. Buses will transport volunteers to the Barr Parking Lot. Do not park at the Barr Trailhead parking lot as this parking will be reserved for recreational users.
Registration will begin at 7:30 a.m., with work starting at 8 a.m. Work will finish around 3 p.m.
The first bus will leave the high school’s parking lot at 7 a.m., with the second bus leaving at 7:20 a.m.
Please dress in layers so you’re prepared for our Colorado weather; closed toe shoes, water, work gloves, and lunch are a must! Sunscreen and hats are recommended.
Trail work is no fun for dogs, so please leave your pooches at home. This project is limited to those 12 years and older, children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult and have a waiver signed by a guardian. Sign-up for the work day at on the REI site.
Please note the Incline is not officially open or legal, hiking the Incline is still considered trespassing. Due to the nature of the Incline, trail work will range from moderate to difficult. If the weather is inclement please visit Incline Friends or Trails and Open Space Coalition that morning to see if the project has been canceled. If canceled the make-up day will be May 19th.
21 year old and over volunteers will get free coupons to enjoy a “tasting” of “Manitou Incline Malbec Wine” at D’Vine Wine in Manitou Springs immediately following the volunteer project.
The Incline Friends ask that you arrive prepared to work since you can hold up your whole group if you aren’t prepared. You shouldn’t have to run back to your car for anything. In the case of this work day, that would mean a long trek from the Barr parking lot back to Manitou High School. Being prepared means having your sun screen already applied, being appropriately dressed in long pants, sturdy footwear (no sandals), gloves to wear and (in your pack) another clothing layer or two, including rain gear, maybe a hat. You should have everything with you that you will need for that day: water, snacks, cell phone, sunglasses, sun screen (for re-applying as perspiration takes a layer away), anything you feel is important to have with you out on the trail, medicine, bug dope, etc.
Incline Friends Membership Meeting
Incline Friends will hold its first General Membership meeting at 6 PM, Thursday, May 3. It will be held at the Colorado Springs Parks and Recreation offices, 1401 Recreation Way. Everyone is invited to attend.
They will discuss the Incline Friends organizational status, provide updated information about the legalizing the Incline and discuss 13 crucial steps that will lead to opening day! There will also be information about the May 12 volunteer work day.
Representatives from Incline Friends partner cities and organizations will be available to answer questions and take your input. Incline Friends is also interested in your ideas about the direction of the friends group.
Bicycle Dreams Movie Fundraiser
The Race Across America (RAAM) has been called the world’s toughest bike race. It is approximately 1.5 times the distance of the Tour de France but has a time limit of 12 days instead of the 3 weeks that the Tour de France takes. That makes for a minimum of 250 miles a day. RAAM racers are on the bikes 20+ hours a day and ride alone instead of in a pack.
You might wonder what it has to do with the Manitou Incline. A movie about RAAM is being used as a fundraiser for the Incline Friends. Bicycle Dreams is a feature-length documentary about the 2005 RAAM. It was won awards at many film festivals over the last few years.
The Bicycle Dreams fundraiser is on Wednesday, March 28 at 7 PM at the Stargazers Theatre. Tickets cost $11 in advance online at imATHLETE or $15 at the door. Tickets are also available at the Colorado Running Company, 833 N. Tejon, and 9275 N. Union, Suite 120; Carmichael Training Systems, 600 S. 21st; Criterium Bicycles, 6150 Corporate Center Dr., and Team Telecycle at 615 S. Baldwin St. in Woodland Park.
There will be 2 RAAM finishers at the movie showing to tell about their personal experiences. Fred Boethling set a new record in 2006 for the 60+ age category. He is now the organizer for RAAM.
You can read a Bicycle Dreams review here. If you want to more about RAAM, you can read a Race Across America FAQ here.
D’Vine Wine Supports the Incline Friends
D’Vine Wines in Manitou Springs is supporting the nonprofit Incline Friends with 2 of their wines. The Incline Friends is the group working toward legalization of the popular Incline and its maintenance.
If you love hiking the Manitou Incline and enjoy a nice bottle of wine, check out D’Vine Wine’s selection. D’Vine Wines will contribute $3 for every bottle of Manitou Incline Malbec and white Manitou Incline Viognier
D’Vine Wines is in the historic old Spa Building within sight of the Manitou Incline at 934 W. Manitou Ave. It is on the side of the building toward the park behind Adam’s Mountain Cafe.
Incline Friends Membership Drive a Success
The Incline Friends held a successful membership drive Wednesday evening at Phantom Canyon Brewery. About 150 people joined the Incline Friends and received their Incline Friends tech t-shirt.
Money raised by the Incline Friends will go toward matching grants, trailhead construction and trail-building projects. If you didn’t make it to the membership drive at Phantom Canyon, you can join the Incline Friends online here.
Incline Friends Membership Drive
Currently the legalization of the Manitou Incline is moving forward well and the Incline could be legal by summer. The Incline Friends is the group that is raising funds to help implement the Manitou Incline Site Development and Management Plan. They are having a membership drive 6 PM to 9 PM. Wednesday, Jan. 25, at Phantom Canyon Brewery.
Members of the Incline Friends committee will be on hand to provide updated information about the legalization process and where the project currently stands.
Community members are encouraged to join Incline Friends, the nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds, public education and volunteer coordination for the Manitou Incline. Membership cost is $35 per year. All who join will receive a new Incline Friends tech T-shirt. And Phantom Canyon has promised to buy a beer for the first 50 who join.
If you can’t make it to the membership drive at Phantom Canyon, you can donate to the Incline Friends online.
Unbreakable: The Western States 100 Showing Benefits the Incline
Join the Incline Friends and ultra runners Anton Krupicka, Geoff Roes and Anita Ortiz for a premier showing of the new documentary “Unbreakable: The Western States 100,” at 7 p.m., Dec. 7 at Stargazers Theatre. Doors open at 6 p.m.
The film by Journeyfilm’s JB Benna follows the footsteps of four extraordinary athletes, including Krupicka and Roes of Boulder, as they prepare for the 2010 race and the daunting challenge of running 100 miles across the Sierra Nevada, some of the most rugged country in the western United States. On race day you’ll join the runners shoulder-to-shoulder as they push their limits above timberline, and then risk life and limb on hell-bent descents.
This is a must see for anyone who dreams of striding across the sky to greet the sunrise.
The evening will be topped with a question and answer discussion with Krupicka, Roes and Ortiz, some of the top ultra runners in the world. Roes won the Western States 100 in 2010, while Ortiz claimed the women’s title in 2009. Krupicka, who attended Colorado College, is a two-time winner of the Leadville 100.
Tickets cost $10 and will be available at Mountain Chalet, 226 N. Tejon St.; Colorado Running Company, 833 N. Tejon St., and 9275 N. Union Blvd, Ste. 120; and Carmichael Training Systems, 600 S. 21st St., No. 100. Tickets will also be available for $10 the day of the show, but it’s wise to purchase them early. Tickets are also available online for $11 at imATHLETE.com.
The event is a fundraiser for Incline Friends, a new organization created to help implement the Manitou Incline Site Development and Management Plan and open the Incline to the public. Incline Friends works to educate users about new rules and regulations, builds relationships with other groups and residents who use and live near the Incline, and organizes volunteer work days.
Manitou Incline Open House January 20th, 2011
The long climb to legalizing hiking the Manitou Incline is taking another step on January 20. There will be an open house about the draft Manitou Incline management plan from 5 to 7 p.m. at Manitou City Hall, 606 Manitou Ave. Instead of a presentation, there will be stations that cover the various topics of the management plan.
I haven’t found info on what changes they’ve made to the draft Manitou Incline plan since it was presented in October. The 2 most unpopular rules were only allowing hiking from dawn to dusk and no dogs. Also those at the October meeting didn’t feel the plan really had any plan to address the parking issues.
I’ve been told that the main fundraising for money to repair and maintain the Manitou Incline will be done through the Incline Friends group. The Trails and Open Space Coalition is facilitating creating the Incline Friends. It is free to join the group. E-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or call at 719-633-6884.
The friends group needs volunteer help in these areas:
- Leadership and Coordination
- Fundraising
- Partnerships and sponsorships
- Grantwriting
- Education/Outreach
- Volunteer coordination
- Maintenance and Construction – physical labor on the Incline.
The open house tomorrow isn’t the final meeting. The recommended plan will also be presented at the public meetings of various appointed and elected bodies of Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs over the coming two months before it will hopefully be approved by the landowners later this spring. The other planned meetings are:
- TOPS Working Committee: February 2, 7:30 a.m. Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department, 1401 Recreation Way
- Parks and Recreation Advisory Board: February 10, 7:30 a.m. Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department, 1401 Recreation Way
- Colorado Springs City Council: February 22, 1 p.m. Colorado Springs City Hall, 107 N. Nevada Avenue
- Manitou Springs Planning Commission: March 9, 7 p.m. Manitou Springs City Hall, 606 Manitou Avenue
- Manitou Springs City Council – TBA.
